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Until recently, the Forest Stewardship Council has had a lock on what has been generally recognized, in the United States at least, as the only legitimate sustainably harvested wood products label organization. All that is coming to a rather abrupt end with the United States Green Building Council’s proposed changes to its Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design green building rating system and the Green Building Initiative’s Green Globes rating system just now entering the fray.

The term inspection has different meanings to different people. To some it means an assessment of the condition of an existing building. To others it means an I-depth probe for possible problems on existing buildings. Some think of inspection in terms of monitoring the process of new construction as it occurs.

Place a wooden pencil between two points and apply downward pressure until it breaks. Now move the two support points closer so that the span is lessened and then apply pressure until it breaks. Repeat this process until you can’t break the pencil.

We all have to be careful and CYA. Everyone knows what CYA is an acronym for. Sometimes, people can go too far and lose sight of what is really important. The following is a true story that shows how CYA can hurt innocent people.

Have you ever been to an industry trade show? I usually attend several each year; the INTEX Expo, World of Concrete, and this year I had the opportunity to attend the Remodeling Show sponsored by the National Association of Home Builders at the Convention Center in Baltimore. You can always tell when a trade show is in town. Local restaurants and hotels are filled with small groups wearing matching shirts.

If you think this editorial is about CSI Miami, count yourself lucky. The construction forensic expert is someone who investigates construction defects.

We are in a terrible economic environment and many of you are feeling the pinch. There’s nothing you can do to increase demand for walls and ceilings, so the focus needs to be on increasing your share of the diminished market. This means landing a higher percentage of the jobs available and focusing on the most profitable ones. Here are some ideas for doing so.

It’s pretty obvious that the U.S. economy is now in a depressed mode, and that home sales, and building construction in general, are two of the many affected industries. Over the last several decades when the construction industry slowed down, EIFS was less affected than other claddings. This, of course, is good news for people involved with EIFS-at least compared to people involved with many other wall products.

There aren’t many products on the market these days that don’t have a green story to tell, a green attribute to highlight. It seems that every company makes green products. The truth is that all products have environmental impact.